Between Illusions and Shadows
by Nina1015
Summary: Shikadai adores his dad, no secrets there. But, in his eyes, there's a person his dad seems to love more than he loves him. Smart or not, Shikadai is just a child, that's something Temari and Shikamaru shouldn't forget. So, when all Hell breaks loose, and Shikamaru save the relationship between him and his son? Or would Shikadai end up hating him forever?


_Hello guys! Nina-chan brings you her new story which was just supposed to be a short, one-shot but because she doesn't know how to write those, it turned out to be way longer than she expected._

 _Hey everyone! For those of you who don't know me yet I'm Nina, nice to meet you all. Today I bring you guys my first Naruto fanfic publish in this website. I've done a couple Naruto fics in the past, but none of them made it here, thank God. Anyways, I decided to go ahead and write about two of my favorite characters simply because I NEED MORE OF THE NEW GENERATION BEFORE IT BECAME THE NEW GENERATION. Like, I would kill to see Sasuke trying to change a diaper, or Naruto trying to calm down a screaming baby, or Sai actually interacting with his child. That would be golden. But no, we don't get to see that I guess._

 _Anyways, I hope you guys like the story. It turned out to be way longer than I originally intended, but that's because I'm not used to writing one-shots and when I do, they are ridiculously long. But I promise it's worth it. Hope you all enjoy it!_

 _PS: I know the characters might seem a little bit OOC, but I really don't care. It's my fanfic I can do as I please xD_

 _PS2: Cookies points to whoever can figure out the meaning behind the title._

 _Nina~_

 **Between Illusions and Shadows**

Shikadai Nara was, according to many of the adults in his life, the smartest and easiest to deal with six year old in Konoha. The kid had inherited not only his looks from his father, but also his laid back personality and brains. Ever since he was a baby, he hardly ever cry, opting for sleeping instead. And being raised by the current head of the Nara clan, and one of the the smartest men in the village, it was just a matter of time until Shikadai started to develop the same kind of intelligence his father possessed. Of course, he was only six years old, but no one doubted that one day he was going to be as good as his old man, if not better. He had also inherited a couple things from his mother, like his feisty personality that he only showed when he was greatly upset, and her eyes. Temari hoped that as her child grew up, he would become a little bit more like her and less like his father. Don't get her wrong, she loved her child just the way he was, but she carried the brat for nine months and pushed him out of her body, it was only fair that her child took after her. But no, she instead got a mini Shikamaru.

It was no secret that Shikadai loved both his parents, but he simply adored his father. As close and him and his mother were, there was a bond between him and Shikamaru that no one could replace. Shikamaru was no better, his son had him wrapped around his little finger. The two of them were practically inseparable. As much as Temari adored the relationship between the her two brats, she something felt a little jealous. This, however, would all fade away the second her child wrap his arms around her. She often made fun of Shikamaru for being whipped, but she was no different than her husband. The little bug, who had come into their lives completely unexpected, had complete control over his parents, not that they would ever tell him that.

However, if you were to walk into the Nara residence today, you would think something completely different.

"Shikadai…" Temari called from the other side of her son's bedroom door. The boy had locked himself in there since the early afternoon. It was now dinner time, and her son had yet to come out. "Dinner's ready, why don't you come and eat something?"

"I'm not hungry." He immediately responded. Temari took a deep breath, this seem to be going nowhere. When her child was upset, he would just block everyone out, something he inherited from his beloved uncle Gaara.

"Okay then, I'll leave you some food, and we can reheat it later if you get hungry, how does that sound?"

"Sounds good." Knowing that she wasn't going to manage anything by trying to argue with her son, Temari walked towards the kitchen to clean the mess she had created while making dinner. Even though she had been married for almost 8 years now, Temari still had a hard time adapting to the domestic life. If it weren't for Shikamaru, she would still burn water.

As she was washing the dishes, Temari started thinking about the events that lead to the current situation she found herself in. A part of her wanted to be pissed at Shikamaru, since the whole situation happened because of him, but at the same time she knew she couldn't, because it wasn't his fault. He was just doing his duty, but as smart as he was, Shikadai was still a kid, he didn't really understand what was going on.

Let's go back to earlier on that day, shall we?

 _ **That morning**_

 _Shikadai had woken up that morning to the smell of pancakes, a really rare occurrence, since his mother wasn't very good at making them, and his dad was out in a mission. Still, Shikadai was excited. Pancakes were his favorite, his dad would make them for him whenever he had days off. However, he's been teaching his mother to make them, so perhaps his mother finally became good enough to make them on her own. There weren't many ways you could ruin a pancake, where there? As fast as his little legs allowed him, Shikada jumped out of bed, brushed his teeth and headed down to the kitchen. To his surprise, he found his mother sitting on the table, enjoying a warm cup of tea. The person behind the delicious smell of pancakes was his father._

" _Dad!" Shikadai practically ran towards his father and hugged him. It had been such a long time since Shikadai had seen him._

 _Shikamaru had been in a very important mission that had taken him a good two months to complete. Ever since Shikadai was born, Shikamaru tried to avoid long missions like this one. However, he was needed in this mission, and no one else could replace him. So, he had no choice but to go. He had missed his family like he didn't thought was possible._

" _Hey there, little man." Shikamaru smiled as he picked him up. God, Shikadai seemed to have grown in the time he was away. Soon enough, Shikamaru wouldn't be able to carry him anymore._

" _Dad, I'm six, I'm not little." Both him and Temari laughed at their son's cuteness._

" _Oh right, sorry, tiny adult." After giving him a long awaited hug, Shikamaru placed Shikadai back on his feet._

" _How was your mission? When did you get back? Did you catch some bad guys? I want to know everything!"_

 _Shikamaru smiled, his son could be very much like him, lazy and disinterested for the majority of things, but he could become as hyper as any six year old when really wanted something._

" _Okay kiddo, one question at the time. Why don't you go and sit with your mother while I finish breakfast and then I'll answer all of your questions." Shikamaru ruffled his son's hair, which was not tied on it's usual ponytail, but falling freely around his face._

 _Excitedly, Shikadai sat down right next to his mother. "Mom, can dad come with us to train today? Please!" Since Shikadai was going to be starting the academy as soon as the summer was over, Temari and Shikamaru agreed that now would be a good time to start training their son. They had plans of doing it together, taking turns between the two of them, but due to Shikamaru's unplanned mission, for the last two months Temari had been training Shikadai by herself._

" _If your dad is up for it, I don't see why not. What do you say, Shikamaru?" Temari didn't want to say yet for Shikamaru, after all, he came back late last night. She knew Shikamaru would like to rest._

" _Of course I'll join you, I have the day off after all."_

 _Shikadai could barely contain his excitement. He had been dying to show his father all the things his mother had taught him. Besides, his mother told him that, since he seemed to be a shadow user, once his father was back he would be able to teach him some jutsus._

" _So, how about we go training after breakfast?" Temari suggested to her son. "I was thinking since your father is back, we could go training early, come back, you two can the nap I know you'll want to take, and then we can go out for dinner somewhere. How does that sound?"_

" _That sounds like a plan." Two months away from his family, and Shikamaru was willing to do anything they asked him to, no matter how troublesome it might be._

 _As the three of them started eating their breakfast, Shikadai noticed a big box in the table. It must have been something his father had brought from his mission._

" _Dad, what's in the box?"_

" _You can open it, just make sure you don't get any syrup in it."_

 _Making sure his hands were syrup free, Shikadai opened the box to find inside a beautiful shogi game. Shikamaru had introduce Shikadai to shogi when the boy was around four, and Shikadai loved the game. He still didn't know all the rules to it, and he still had a lot to learn, but his father had promised him to teach him everything there was to learn about shogi._

" _It's pretty, isn't it?" Shikamaru asked._

 _Shikadai just nodded. "Can we play later dad?"_

" _Sorry kiddo, but that shogi board isn't for us. I got it for Mirai as a present for becoming a jounin." Shikadai had to resist the urge to make a face the second he heard Mirai Sarutobi's name. As of lately, the boy started to create a certain dislike towards the girl that has pretty much grown next to him._

 _At first, Shikadai liked Mirai, or Mira as he used to call her when he was little. She would always visit at least once a week, and she babysat him whenever his parents had last minute matters they needed to attend. Mirai practically spend as much time with the Naras as she did with her own mother. Shikadai also liked Mirai's mother, Kurenai. She was a very pretty lady, who would always make him his favorite sweets whenever she babysat him. She would also always bake him a cake on his birthday. Pretty much, Kurenai was a saint in the eyes of Shikadai._

 _However, as he grew up, Shikadai started to become more aware of the relationship between Mirai and his father. Shikadai knew his father was a busy man, both his parents had explain this to him before, but for some strange reason, his father always had time for Mirai. He always trained with her whenever she asked, if she came over for dinner, his father would leave work early and be home for dinner, and they would always play shogi together. Overall, it was like if no matter how busy his father was, he always made time for Mirai, but never for him. Or at least, that's the way his six year old brain processed it._

 _As he started to notice the relationship between his father and Mirai, his own relationship with Mirai changed. Shikadai no longer saw her as the sisterly figure that had always been in his life, but as a threat. Because Shikadai was starting to think his dad loved Mirai more than he loved him._

 _Of course, he had never told anyone anything._

 _With a sad look, Shikadai closed the box. If this was a present for Mirai, Shikadai knew better than to try to mess with it._

" _I can't believe she's already a jounin." Temari broke the silence that had suddenly fallen over the kitchen._

" _I know, I can't believe it either. Think we should invite her over tonight?"_

 _Shikadai wanted to jump and say no. He hasn't seen his father in almost two month, he deserved to have him to himself at least for one day. He knew that if Mirai were to be there, she would take all of his dad's attention._

" _I think that's a good idea. It would give Kurenai a night off. I know her and Mirai have been...arguing a little more than usual. Something about a boy."_

 _Shikadai was skulking, but neither one of his parents noticed it._

" _Well Shikadai, why don't you go upstairs and get ready so we can go train." Shikadai nodded and headed towards his room to get ready. He at least would have his dad to himself most of the day. That was good enough for him._

 _Meanwhile, Temari was washing the dishes, a task that was proving to be quite a project, given the fact that Shikamaru had his arms wrapped around her waist and was kissing her neck._

" _Cry baby, you need to stop."_

" _No" was Shikamaru's respond as he kissed a particularly sensitive spot in his wife's neck._

" _Shikadai is going to come down at any moment."_

" _Is not like we can't handle the brat." Shikamaru's hands started to make their way up from her waist, to her stomach, just to stop just below her breast. "I've missed you."_

 _Before the two of them could say something, the house phone started to ring._

" _Fuck" Shikamaru let go of his wife to go pick up the phone. He would've normally ignore it, but there was something telling him he needed to pick up that call._

" _Hello"_

" _ **Un...uncle Shika…**_ " _Hearing the crying voice in the other end of the line, every single sense in Shikamaru's body was activated._

" _Mirai?"_

" _ **Yes...I...could...mom is in the hospital. I...I..."**_ _Right now, Mirai couldn't even think of any words._

" _What's wrong with your mother?"_

" _ **Don't know...Sakura...check...I'm scared."**_

" _Okay, listen up. I'll be there in a couple minutes okay? Don't leave the hospital." And with that, the call was ended._

" _What's going on?" Asked a very worried Temari._

" _I don't know. Something happened to Kurenai, I guess Mirai took her to the hospital. Mirai was practically a crying mess, I couldn't figure out half the things she was telling me."_

" _I'm ready." Shikadai announced as he walked into the kitchen, all dressed for their training session._

 _Temari and Shikamaru exchanged looks, Shikadai was going to be disappointed that they were not going to train together._

" _It seems like it's only going to be you and your mother training today. I'm really sorry Shikadai."_

" _Why?"_

 _Shikamaru took a deep breath. He just hoped his son would understand. "Mirai just called, her mom is in the hospital, and Mirai is all by herself. I'm going to go make sure everything's okay with them. I'm really sorry."_

" _Would you still make it home for dinner?"_

" _I'm sure I will. And I promise I'll make it up to you." Shikamaru kissed his son's forehead, then his wife, and then he left._

 _Shikadai couldn't help but feel sad, jealous and angry all at once. Why did his father had to be the one always watching over Mirai?_

" _Well, I guess is just you and me today. How about we practice those shuriken throws that you don't seem to be getting the hang of?"_

 _Shikadai nodded, suddenly, all the energy the boy had earlier seem to have disappear. Temari noticed it, but decided not to say anything about it. She was sure Shikadai would come around. And so, the two of them left to go train._

 _By lunch time, Shikadai and Temari were all sweaty and hungry. Temari could continue, but she knew her son didn't have the same stamina she did, so she decided to call it a day. They headed back to the house and after a light lunch, Shikadai decided to go and take a nap. As distracting as training with Shikadai was, Temari was worried about Kurenai and Mirai. Her husband hasn't contacted her since he left, and not knowing what was going on was killing Temari._

 _It was early afternoon when Shikamaru finally arrived._

" _How's everything?" Was the first question Temari asked her husband._

 _Shikamaru took a deep breath. "The good new is that is nothing life threatening. Bad news is that she needs to get surgery done. Mirai was losing it. Hinata is with her right now but…"_

" _But?"_

" _Hinata had volunteer to stay with Mirai until Kurenai was out of her surgery, however, Naruto is out on a mission and she was relaying on her sister to watch over the kids, but it looks like she couldn't. There's no way Mirai could've stayed by herself, so I kinda volunteer to stay with her."_

 _Temari sighted, Shikadai was not going to like this one bit. The boy was really looking forward spending some time with his dad. But, she knew right now Mirai couldn't be left alone. And she would offer to go and stay with the girl, but she was nowhere as close with Mirai as Shikamaru was._

" _You'll get the task of telling Shikadai you won't make it to dinner."_

 _Shikamaru groaned. He was not looking forward telling Shikadai their dinner plans were going to be canceled. He really wanted to spend the day with his son, but it looks like life had a different plan for him._

 _Before either one of them call for him, they heard Shikadai's tiny steps coming down the stairs._

" _Dad! How's Kurenai-san?"_

 _Shikamaru smiled at his son's concern. "She...she's okay, but she needs to get surgery done."_

" _What's a surgery?"_

" _A surgery is when they have to cut you open because there's something wrong inside of you." Shikadai's eye widen. "But don't worry, the doctors know what they are doing and I'm sure she'll be fine."_

" _So, you are coming to dinner with us?"_

 _Here came the hardest part of the day._

" _Shikadai….I'm sorry but I won't be able to make it to dinner. See, Mirai is really worried about her mother, and it won't be good if she were to be left alone. So, I'm going to be staying with Mirai in the hospital, at least until her mother's surgery is finished."_

" _But you said you were going to go to dinner with us…"_

" _I know, and I'm really sorry. You can still go out with your mom and go anywhere you guys want, my treat. How does that sound?"_

" _I wanted you to go. I haven't see you in forever." Shikadai said in a sad voice. If there was something that Shikamaru hated more than anything in the world was disappointing his son._

" _I know, I'm sorry my tiny adult."_

 _Shikadai, nor his parent for that matter, knew what took over him. All he knew is that something in his brain snapped, and he couldn't contain the words that left his mouth. "No you are not!" He yelled. "You are always doing this. You never have time for me, is always Mirai. You always train with her, but ever since I started training you haven't trained a single day with me. You don't even play shogi with me anymore, but everytime Mirai comes over, you always play with her. Is like no matter how busy you are, you always have time for her but no for me. Is like...is like you love her more than you love me!" By now, tears were streaming down Shikadai's face, and he did the first thing that came to his brain: he ran away before either one of his parents could say something._

 _Shikadai ran as fast as he could and hid in his room. He threw himself in his bed, hid his head between his pillows and starting sobbing his eyes out. He knew he was "too old" to be crying like this, but he didn't care. He was angry and sad and frustrated all at once. All he wanted was for his dad to spend some time with him, was that too much to ask?_

 _ **Present time**_

To say that Temari was shocked by her son's outburst was an understatement. Never, not even when he was a baby, had Shikadai thrown a tantrum. And while she knew this wasn't a exactly a tantrum, she'll put it under that category because she doesn't know what else to call it. Shikadai had always been such a laid back, easygoing child, she never even imagine he was feeling this way. Of course, Shikamaru had been completely and utterly devastated at his son's words, but he did a good job at keeping a stoic face. But she knew it would be a matter of time before Shikamaru came in having a mental break down.

Talking about Shikamaru…

The front door of their house had had just open, and while she wasn't the most skilled sensory type ninja, after living with Shikamaru for as long as she had, she was able to sense his chakra whenever he was nearby. Having finished cleaning the kitchen, she headed towards the living room, where she found Shikamaru sitting in the couch, smoking a cigarette. Smoking was a habit that, for the most part, Shikamaru had given up. However, every now and then, he enjoyed smoking one or two cigarettes, usually when he was under a lot of stress. He also knew better than to smoke in the house, but just this once, Temari would let it slip.

"How did everything turned out?" Temari asked as she sat next to him.

"Everything went fine. Kurenai had to stay overnight for observation, but other than that, everything went smoothly. Mirai is much calmer know, she's staying the night with her mother." Shikamaru took one last smoke out of his cigarette. "How's...how's Shikadai?" Shikamaru hasn't stopped thinking about his son's words.

"He's been locked in his room since you left. Honestly, he could be worse than Gaara sometimes." The two of them laughed at this. "You know, you need to talk to him."

"I...I don't know what I'll say to him."

"Just talk to him, explain things to him. He's very smart for his age, but he still a kid Shikamaru. There still a lot of things he's not going to understand."

"You think he still awake?"

"He's just like you, Shikamaru. If something is upsetting him as much as I know this is, he won't fall asleep. So go talk to him."

The distance from the living room to his son's bedroom felt like the longest distance Shikamaru had ever walked. Hundreds of thousands different scenarios ran through his head, but at the end, he was just drawing blanks. He had no idea how he was going to deal with this situation. This was an ironic situation. He was considered one of the smartest men in the whole village. He's known for coming up with plans in a matter of seconds. Yet, he had no idea how to face a six year old.

Once he arrived to Shikadai's bedroom, he knocked on the door. "Shikadai, may I come in?"

All Shikamaru got was silence, so, he decided to go ahead and enter the room, the door wasn't locked after all. Shikamaru saw his son lying down on his bed, all curled up. Gently, Shikamaru sat at the end of the bed.

"I know you are not asleep, Shikadai." Shikadai didn't want to talk to his dad, so he kept himself hidden under the blankets.

Shikamaru took a deep breath. Temari was right, the kid could be worse than Gaara whenever he wanted to be. "Everything turned out alright with Kurenai, she's okay now." Shikamaru was hoping this was enough to get his son out, but it seemed like it wasn't enough.

Seeing that this was getting him nowhere, Shikamaru tried a different approach.

"I have tomorrow off as well, how about I make up for today?"

"No...because you are just going to not make it again." By the sound of Shikadai's voice, Shikamaru was able to tell that the boy had been crying for quite some time now, something that was rare on the boy. And it pained Shikamaru to know that he was the reason why his son was crying.

"Shikadai, I'm really sorry about today. You know I love you and I would…." Before Shikamaru could say another word, Shikadai cut him off.

"No you don't." The small boy finally face his father. His eyes were red and his chubby cheeks were stained with tears. It actually an adorable sight, but given the situation they were in, Shikamaru didn't find it as cute.

"What put that idea on your head?" If this would've been any other six year old in the village, Shikamaru could see why it would be such a problem. Children get jealous, he knew that much. But this was Shikadai, who was, not that he was biased or anything, one of the smartest kids around. He still didn't understand what was his son's train of thoughts in order to reach that conclusion.

"It's everything!" Shikadai yelled as more tears ran down his face. "Ever since I started training with mom, you haven't been there once, but whenever Mirai wants to, you always train with her. You are always getting her presents and whenever she's invited over, you always make sure you're home early. No matter what, you always make time for her." Shikadai absolutely hated himself right now. He was crying like a little baby! Boys weren't supposed to cry, much less in front of their fathers. Not only that, but in Shikadai's mind, Shikamaru was the greatest hero out of everyone, and he was just embarrassing himself in front of him.

Shikamaru was torn between feeling relief and feeling like he was the worse dad in the world. Relief because it seems like Shikadai was just confused and misunderstanding the whole situation. Shikamaru was sure that after explaining things to Shikadai, he would come to his senses. However, he completely failed to see how his son was feeling. He just assumed he knew better, and forgot that smart or not, Shikadai was still a child.

"Shikadai, I want you to listen to me very carefully alright? Your mother and I agree that you should start your training a couple months before you started the academy. That way, you had time to just be a normal child." ' _Since after you start the academy, you won't be one for too long.'_ "When we decided to go ahead and start your training, I got sent of my mission. I tried to work my way out of going, but I wasn't able to, so I told your mother to start training you without me. Either one of us could teach you the basics, and I didn't want you to fall behind while waiting for me to come back. I haven't trained with you not because I don't want to, but simply because I haven't been able to. As for all the time I take to train with Mirai and having her over, you need to understand something. Mirai's dad was someone very important to me, and one day I'll tell you all about it. Bottom line is, I promised him I was going to look after Mirai, and be there to help her out as much as she needed. I know I can never replace her father, but I don't want her to feel like she has no one other than her mom." Perhaps Shikadai was still too small to really understand everything that was going on, but the least he could do was explain it to him. "Mirai is someone very important to me and I love her dearly, but that doesn't mean I don't love you. You're my child, and the love I feel for you is not like the love I feel for Mirai. I love you like I never thought was possible to love anyone. So please, don't ever think I don't."

By the time his father had finished his speech, Shikadai's cheeks burned with embarrassment. He was acting like such a baby!

And suddenly, like if a dam had broken, Shikadai bursted out crying. "I'm...I'm sorry." He muttered between his sobs. "I...I didn't want to...upset you."

Immediately, Shikaru wrapped his arms around his little boy. "It's alright Shikadai, I'm not upset." Actually, he was upset, but not at his son. He was upset at himself for not noticing how his son felt. He should've been a better parent and notice that something was upsetting his son, before it got to this point. "You're my baby, you will always be my baby. And no matter what happens between us, I will always love you, with every bit of me." Now, Shikamaru was not a man of words, let alone words as sappy as this one. He prefered showing his emotions through actions, but tonight, they both needed this. Besides, this would stay between the two of them. Nobody had to know about it.

"I love you too dad." Those were the words Shikamaru needed to hear for his soul to return to his body. He needed a couple more years of practice before he could handle Shikadai's rebellious side.

"Well, tiny adult, I think it's way past your bedtime." Gently, Shikamaru pushed Shikadai until the boy was laying on his bed again, and tucked him in. "How about, tomorrow I make it up to you by taking you to your favorite place for dinner?"

Shikadai's smile could practically light up the room. "Yes!"

"Alright, now go to sleep."

Shikamaru stayed with Shikadai until he was sure the boy was asleep. Shikamaru never thought of himself as a perfect father. He was quite far from it, and the events of today proved that. But, he would always be there for Shikadai, just like his dad was there for him. He would always take care of his son and make sure Shikadai's knows just how much he loves him. As long as Shikadai and Temari were safe, the rest of the world could go to Hell for all he cared. This was his world, and nobody was going to take it away from him.


End file.
